When a home owner puts his or her residential property on the market for sale, the listing agent need to determine accessibility to licensed real estate agents based on the instructions from the Seller. This includes whether or not to use a lockbox, and if so, the location and the type of access (e.g. go direct, call first, appointment only or a combination of these). Information about the property, including access and instructions to show the home, are mutually agreed upon by the listing agent and the owner. This information, as well as detailed information about the property is often entered into a Multiple Listing System (MLS) by the listing agent, assistant or authorized MLS user.
Typical data input categories (related to showing instructions) include: Showing Instructions, Type of Key Safe, Key Safe Location, Signage and Agent Remarks. Each MLS system varies with regard to data fields, but this data requires updating as conditions change regarding property occupancy, days/hours available for showing, and special instruction to showing agents.
Signage is controlled by the city, subdivision or community and in many cases, flyer boxes are not permitted and in exclusive communities “For Sale” signs are also prohibited.
A lockbox (aka key safe or key box) is a box that stores a key. A lockbox typically includes a main body with an internal key box, and a hanging shackle defining a shackle passage that may be opened for releasably securing the lockbox to a fixed hanging point.
A lockbox is a standard and accepted device for residential home sales. In the real estate sales field, the listing agent routinely hangs a lockbox on or near a listed property so that multiple showing agents can conveniently access the property without assistance. The lockbox is generally permitted on doors, gates, water pipes or gas meters.
Lockboxes come in two general forms; electronic lockboxes and mechanical lockboxes. Electronic lockboxes are predominant in the real estate sales field because they include security features (e.g. audit trails showing who opened them and when, disablement of lost or stolen “keys”, etc.) and convenience features (e.g. time of day lockout that help control access in conformance with an owner or tenant's wishes). Mechanical lockboxes that require a special key, combination, or both are available, but they generally lack the enhanced security and convenience features so they are less common in the real estate sales field.
FIG. 1 shows a residential home 100 that has been offered “for sale” and has been fitted with a lockbox 110 having a key secured therein. Here, the lockbox 110 is attached or shackled to the door knob 102 of the property's front door 101 so that the listing agent and many showing agents can retrieve the key and enter the home.
In general, lockboxes used by real estate agents are issued and assigned only to licensed real estate agents who belong to a local association or MLS Board. Each lockbox has a unique serial number and standard preprogrammed features.
FIGS. 2A, 2B, 3A, and 3B illustrate four typical lockboxes 110, 120, 130, 140 that are frequently used by real estate agents; two that are sold by General Electric (“GE”) (items 110 and 120) and two that are sold by SentriLock (items 130 and 140). As noted above, there are also generic combination-type and key-type lockboxes but they are generally sold for use by non-agents.
When a property is listed for sale, all of the information regarding the property is generally contained within the MLS system under that property listing. The lockbox itself usually has no information on the exterior of the device and it provides no immediate visual instructions regarding access to, or features of the home. The listing agent can put written information in the Lockbox's key box along with the key so that certain information is passed along to the showing agent when the key box is opened (e.g. an alarm code or instructions regarding a pet). However, that information is not visible from a distance and is only available after the lockbox is opened.
It is possible to program “time of day” limitations on access to the lockbox (i.e. hours of operation) through the local Realtor® Association or MLS Board. This is a useful feature, but is somewhat inflexible. A listing agent is the only one authorized to request a change and must physically bring the lockbox to the local Realtor®'s office to have the hours changed. The listing agent assigns a password to each lockbox and must also provide that to the Association. This process is cumbersome to an agent who is marketing a property with frequently changes in access hours or showing instructions.
In addition, the owner, tenant, or guest of the home have no control over showing agents who arrive at the home unprepared or with outdated information.
There remains a need, therefore, for a lockbox tag system that overcomes the shortcomings of the present lockboxes and related MLS information.